Archive for the 'Phil Jackson' Tag Under 'Lakers' Category

Here is Phil Jackson's full statement, released through his agent's office, regarding the Lakers hiring Mike D'Antoni as head coach after negotiating toward a third run for Jackson as their coach:

"Saturday morning, Jim Buss, called to ask if he could come and visit. I did not solicit or ask for the opportunity, but I welcomed both he and Mitch Kupchak into my home to discuss the possibility of my return to the Lakers as the head coach. We talked for over an hour and a half.

"No contractual terms were discussed and we concluded with a handshake and an understanding that I would have until Monday (today) to come back to them with my decision. I did convey to them that I did have the confidence that I could do the job.

"I was awakened at midnight on Sunday by a phone call from Mitch Kupchak. He told me that the Lakers had signed Mike D'Antoni to a three-year agreement and that they felt he was the best coach for the team. The decision is of course theirs to make. I am gratified by the groundswell of support from the Laker fans who endorsed my return and it is the principal reason why I considered the possibility."

Phil Jackson's agent Brian Musburger had this to say Monday afternoon about the Lakers' negotiations with Jackson being ended with word late Sunday night that the Lakers had done a deal instead with Mike D'Antoni to become the Lakers' next head coach:

"We are stunned, not so much with the decision the Lakers made, because Phil had no hold on the job. But we are stunned with the way Phil learned of it."

The Chicago-based Musburger, who represents Jackson along with his father Todd, was in Los Angeles with the expectation perhaps to continue negotiations with the Lakers, but the Lakers moved forward with D'Antoni already Sunday night instead.

In a major twist for Lakers fans hoping to go back to the future with Phil Jackson, the Lakers have made Mike D'Antoni their next head coach.

It had appeared to be Jackson's job if he wanted it, but the Lakers signed D'Antoni late Sunday night via fax -- and Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak called Jackson to notify him that the Lakers had already closed the deal with D'Antoni.

"The decision was unanimous by Dr. (Jerry) Buss, Jim Buss and Mitch that Mike was the best coach for our team at this time," Lakers spokesman John Black said.

D'Antoni, 61, is signed for three years and what is believed to be $12 million, coinciding with the three years on Steve Nash's Lakers contract. The Lakers have a team option for a fourth year with D'Antoni, who reached two Western Conference finals with Nash dominating at point guard in Phoenix before failing to win a playoff game in four pressure-packed seasons with the New York Knicks in 2008-12.

From the beginning, the Lakers' brass was uncertain about whether it should be D'Antoni or Jackson, with there being an underlying belief that despite what the fans and certain players wanted in Jackson, D'Antoni was a better fit for the team's personnel. Nash and Dwight Howard, the centerpiece for the Lakers' future, are renowned for their ability in pick-and-roll sets, which are the foundation of D'Antoni's fast-shooting system.

Nash has been out since suffering a small non-displaced fracture in his fibula Oct. 30 in a loss against Portland. He was examined by team doctor, Steve Lombardo, last week who pushed back the return date.

In the meantime, Nash will continue working on individual drills and waiting for the Lakers' coaching situation to be settled. The Lakers fired Mike Brown on Friday after the team's dismal 1-4 start and already have talked to Mike Dunleavy and Mike D'Antoni, while Phil Jackson decides whether to return to the bench for a third stint.

Center is easiest position in triangle offense to learn. That's the first good X's and O's news for Dwight Howard if Phil Jackson indeed becomes the Lakers' coach again.

The key difference between Mike Brown's outgoing offense with Princeton elements is that the Princeton pulls big guys away from the basket, whereas the triangle very much emphasizes the post. The real name of the triangle is actually the "triple-post offense" -- and Lakers such as Howard, Pau Gasol, Kobe Bryant and Metta World Peace do much of their best work in the post.

So the triangle will fit Howard, who will be way better than Andrew Bynum at running the floor for deep post position as the first option in the early offense. Howard isn't a great passer, but he is very experienced at looking for guys from the post. Shaquille O'Neal wasn't a particularly great passer either, but he got comfortable just looking for cutters and then going for what he knows or kicking it out to shooters with the floor spaced well.

One of the Lakers' questions in bringing Phil Jackson back as head coach is how well he'll utilize point guard Steve Nash, especially considering Nash built his legend and won two NBA MVP trophies in Mike D'Antoni's fast-paced, pick-and-roll offense.

Pick and rolls are available within triangle's framework. Jackson also is good at saving specific pick-and-roll sets for fourth quarters or even just playoff games. So Nash should be fresh to run those late in games without wearing down from lugging the ball all game long, all season long -- one of the goals of Mike Brown's outgoing read-and-react offense.

Nash's fantastic shooting ability will be maximized in the triangle even if his passing ability is somewhat marginalized by the triangle being a two-guard front. (Both guards can handle the ball or initiate the offense.) But don't even count on that, necessarily, because Kobe Bryant will play mostly on the wing (small forward) in the triangle to be closer to the basket and not facing the whole defense. With Metta World Peace or anyone else kind of sketchy at playing the guard position, Nash might have to initiate the offense more than Phil's usual point guards.

Jackson is also open to shifting away from the triangle for longer stretches if personnel dictates it. He did that with Michael Jordan in Chicago and will embrace the challenge of winning a title for the first time with a star point guard if his deal gets done with the Lakers now. Gary Payton, not nearly the spot-up shooter or open-minded type that Nash is, didn't serve Jackson well when the Lakers fell short of the NBA title in 2004.

Kobe Bryant hated to see Phil Jackson retire two seasons ago. Not only because it meant the end of a great championship run for Bryant, who won five NBA titles with Jackson, but because of the way it ended.

The Dallas Mavericks swept the defending NBA champions out of the 2011 playoffs and Jackson into retirement with a 122-86 embarrassment in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals. Bryant scored 17 points on a gimpy leg in Jackson's finale and that is what has lingered with the Lakers star.

"The one thing that's always bothered me is that his last year I wasn't able to give him my normal self because I was playing on one leg and it's always eaten away at me," Bryant said after Friday's 101-77 victory against Golden State. "The last year of his career, I wasn't able to give him everything I had."

Bryant could have a shot at redeeming himself should Jackson return as the Lakers coach. The Lakers fired Mike Brown and reportedly have reached out to Jackson.

"He's too great of a coach to have had to go out that way," Bryant said. "That's my personal sentiment. Like I said, for me, I took it to heart because I couldn't give him everything I had physically because my knee was shot. That's always kind of bothered me."

The Lakers' firing of head coach Mike Brown on Friday speaks to the urgency that ownership feels with regard to this and next season, the last two prime chances for the Lakers to win championships before planning to cut payroll below the luxury-tax plateau in accordance with the new collective bargaining agreement.

Lakers owner Jerry Buss, 78, also has had health problems and isn't getting any younger. One of his goals is for the Lakers to have more total NBA championships than the rival Boston Celtics, with the Celtics currently leading, 17-16.

"The bottom line is the team was not wining at the pace that we expected the team to win," Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak said Friday afternoon. "And we didn't see improvement."

Among the reasons for firing Brown just five games into the season were his failure to deliver the dominant defense he suggested he would, a struggling bench unit with peculiar rotations and Brown's inability to get messages across to the team. Brown was notified at 9:30 a.m. Friday morning of the decision, which Kupchak said was made by Lakers owner Jerry Buss, executive vice president Jim Buss and him starting Thursday.

"We're not looking five or 10 years down the road," Kupchak said. "This team was built to contend this year. There's no guarantee that this team will win a championship, but we feel it can be deeply in the hunt."

The speculation that Phil Jackson is headed to Orlando to take on the job of general manager continues, although no one is saying anything out loud.

Both SI.com and the Orlando Sentinel quoted unnamed sources who said the former Lakers coach might be interested in a front office job that would allow him to remain in Los Angeles and travel to Orlando sporadically throughout the year. The Magic reportedly want some one in the office full-time.

Former Charlotte coach Sam Vincent, who played in Chicago when Jackson was an assistant, has been the point person. Vincent reportedly initiated the conversation between the parties and under his plan, he would serve as in a front-office capacity and have two former Jackson proteges on the coaching staff.

Brian Shaw would serve as the team's head coach, and Scottie Pippen would be Shaw's lead assistant.

Jackson's hefty price tag (he earned $12 million in his last year with the Lakers), a request for a slice of minority ownership (according to sources), plus the Magic's desire for a full-time GM could put nix the entire plan.